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In 2008, we have seen some regulations promulgated, including the ban on
the use of hosepipes for cleaning verandas, washing cars and watering
gardens, etc. A minority of the population have totally ignored these
measures and it is not unusual to see hoses being used illegally, despite
the risk of fines. This shows that the only way to enforce this is
repression, but how?
There are many suggestions in this site that currently have no legal base
by which they can be implemented. The water situation as we enter into 1999
— or 2009 — constitutes a contingency
that justifies new legislation for the state of emergency. This should be
conjoined with heavy sanctions against anyone found to contravene this new
and existing legislation regarding water, during the emergency.
Of course, no laws are useful if they cannot be enforced. The police have
their hands full with more serious matters than to check whether water is
being used correctly. The "tiger-teams" mentioned previously could be made
up of sworn officers with the technical requirements to fulfil their primary
duty but with also the power to denounce major violations and to impose
on-the-spot penalties for minor ones, naturally with a right of appeal.
Of course, the most severe penalty for the misuse of water is to have the
water cut off for a period and force the user to carry water into the house
from a standpipe. After a month of that, it is pretty sure that the garden
will no longer be watered with a hosepipe!
One point that should not be ignored: water is water, no matter where it
comes from, and there is only a limited quantity on the island. It makes no
difference whether it comes from a well, a borehole or a municipal supply.
It is all water from the rain that falls on Cyprus and must be treated in
exactly the same way. It is not an excuse to wash the road outside the house
and say it comes from one's own well.
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